Chapter 11: Wedding Preparations (2)
Aracila set the documents down and calmly opened her mouth.
“Duchess, your demands seem excessive.”
There was no way she would make such demands unless she was trying to make a fortune by selling off her son. Especially considering that this wasn’t even a marriage where the Hugo Marquisate would be at a disadvantage from the start.
Fulfilling the demands of the Vandermir Duchy would completely drain Aracila of her wealth.
“Why do we even need a new mansion in the capital…?”
“Because after the marriage, the plan is for them to live in the house Damian currently resides in.”
“Yes.”
Both parties had agreed not to find a new home for the newlyweds. With an uncertain future regarding a possible divorce, and since Damian had firmly insisted on living in his own house, it was a reasonable decision.
“That house originally belonged to our family, so you must compensate accordingly.”
“……”
At this moment, Aracila suddenly felt like she would rather buy a separate newlywed home with her own money.
Rather than unfairly buying someone else’s house, it would be far better to purchase her own with her own money.
“Duchess, why don’t we find a reasonable middle ground through mutual agreement?”
“There is no negotiation, my dear. If you want to take someone else’s precious son, this much is only natural. You weren’t planning to just take him without anything in return, were you?”
The duchess elegantly lifted her teacup as she spouted words that would surely leave her own son in disbelief if he heard them.
She was fully determined to push Aracila into canceling the marriage on her own.
“One should have a conscience, you know. Moreover, my dear, you are merely an average mage from the Mage Tower, while Damian is the commander of a knight order.”
“Madam, I’m sorry, but I am quite a well-established mage within the Mage Tower.”
Aracila’s smile cracked. She could tolerate many things, but she could not stand having her career dismissed.
“Merely an average mage?” That was insulting.
“And so? Damian is even a Sword Master. That’s all thanks to our family sponsoring his education abroad. Since you will be benefiting from that, you should at least compensate through a proper dowry.”
Aracila wondered what kind of mindset one must have to demand such compensation from their own stepson.
Moreover, it wasn’t as if the duchess had actually raised Damian with such great care, contrary to her claims.
“Who in their right mind sends a fourteen-year-old child abroad to study alone?”
Damian hadn’t earned the nickname ‘the ruthless knight’ for nothing. He had clawed his way through hardship and returned as a Sword Master.
Yet, listening to the duchess now, one would think he had smoothly followed an elite course like a delicate greenhouse flower.
“I have no intention of conceding on this matter. If you can’t meet the conditions, cancel the marriage.”
The duchess finally revealed her true intentions, curling her lips into a smile.
Aracila once again skimmed through the document filled with outrageous demands.
If she refused to comply, the duchess would use it as an excuse to delay the wedding.
Perhaps they would go as far as breaking off the engagement entirely and push for a marriage between Iris and Oscar instead.
“At least this is a problem that can be solved with money, so it’s not the worst outcome…”
Iris’s life was worth more than gold. Even if it cost her entire fortune, she would endure it.
“I can’t prepare the dowry immediately, so please give me some time, Duchess.”
“Very well. But if you agree to pay, you must provide it within fifteen days. You were the one who set the wedding date for a month from now.”
“Understood. Is there anything else you’d like to discuss?”
The duchess, who had just set down her teacup, gazed at Aracila.
With her graceful appearance, she seemed like a model lady raised in a prestigious noble family.
She decided to be generous and offer some advice to this young, foolish noblewoman who was about to marry her useless second son.
“My dear, I say this because I care for you as if you were my own daughter, so listen well.”
“Yes, madam.”
“There is nothing good about marrying Damian. The family estate will be inherited by my other son, and you will simply be the wife of an ordinary knight. Is that truly the kind of life you want, being born into nobility?”
The duchess herself had been born as the daughter of an insignificant baron, yet she had risen to the position of Duchess of Vandermir.
She had refused proposals from mediocre men and endured several years as the duke’s mistress to achieve that status.
“Most women seek to rise in status through marriage. Surely, you are no different.”
Observing Aracila, who seemed lost in thought with her lips pressed together, the duchess smiled.
Hearing such words, she was bound to hesitate.
However, what the duchess had failed to consider was that while Aracila did indeed have ambitions, she sought to achieve them by her own means—not through others.
Having listened patiently to the duchess’s words, Aracila finally responded in a clear and steady voice.
“Isn’t Sir Vandermir also the duchess’s son?”
“……!”
The duchess’s face stiffened instantly at the unexpected counter.
Aracila, unfazed, continued speaking.
“And just moments ago, you were boasting about him being a knight commander and a Sword Master. Yet now, you refer to him as merely an ordinary knight. If he’s just an ordinary knight, why does he require such an extravagant dowry?”
She shook the document in her hand and shrugged.
The duchess let out a short, incredulous laugh.
“Lady Hugo, I’ve felt this before, but you truly are difficult to communicate with.”
“I’m just confused about what tune to dance to. Is he a proud son, or just an ordinary knight?”
Aracila scrunched her nose playfully and smirked.
Her expression was so infuriating that words weren’t needed to describe it.
With a cold glare, the duchess stood up abruptly without another word.
“Have a safe trip back, Duchess.”
As the older woman’s back receded icily into the distance, Aracila did not forget to offer a polite farewell.
Of course, no response came.
Unbothered, Aracila carefully gathered the documents.
There was no way she could keep this to herself.
She needed to show them to her fiancé immediately.
Meanwhile, at the Crimson Hawk Knights’ Order
With the Commander’s Marriage Officially Confirmed, the Crimson Hawk Knights Were in Turmoil.
A knight marrying the representative mage of the Mage Tower?
And a love marriage at that?
The public was ablaze with excitement, expecting an extraordinary romance.
But within the knight order, the atmosphere was different.
“Commander, please reconsider your marriage once more.”
“Considering the Ritterson incident, you must be careful!”
“How do we know she’s not a woman with sinister intentions, just like that witch?!”
The black-clad knights trailed behind Damian, clamoring with concern.
And what was this Ritterson incident they spoke of?
It was none other than the infamous case of Jonathan Ritterson—a Sword Master and the former commander of the Imperial Knights—who was murdered after marrying a mage.
This shocking crime played a major role in worsening the already strained relationship between knights and mages in the Setron Empire.
Jonathan’s wife, Lexie Ritterson, was arrested and confessed that she had deliberately approached him with the intention of marrying him.
“If Jonathan Ritterson had been left unchecked, we would have entered an era where brainless knights, who only knew brute force, dominated. I simply prevented such misfortune from occurring.”
Her motive had sent shockwaves through the entire knight community. A mage had assassinated the greatest knight of the time just to curb the growing power of knights.
Even now, many knights held deep-seated prejudices against mages—especially female ones.
“Commander, please, do not marry a mage!”
“Enough. Do not question my decisions.”
Tired of being hounded by his subordinates, Damian scowled in frustration.
But his devoted followers were relentless.
“They say even within the Mage Tower, she’s known as an odd woman. If that witch ever tries to harm you…”
“Are you referring to me?”
A clear, melodic voice suddenly cut in.
The knights turned around—and then screamed in shock.
Aracila stood there, her wavy hair cascading messily over her face like the curtains of a closed window, her eyes rolled back to reveal only the whites.
“Aaaah!”
“A ghost?!”
Some knights were so startled that their legs gave out, causing them to collapse on the spot.
Damian, looking utterly dumbfounded, shifted his gaze between his subordinates and Aracila, who was standing eerily still like a ghost.
“What are you doing, my lady? Are you trying to imitate a ghost?”
“Yes, since you all insist on calling me a witch, I thought I’d play along.”
Sweeping her hair back, Aracila gave a chilling smile.
Behind her, Audrey hurriedly moved to fix her hair.
“You all have no reservations about badmouthing the soon-to-be wife of your superior, do you? Is this what you call knightly honor—gossiping about a woman behind her back?”
The knights flinched and avoided eye contact.
Just moments ago, they had been calling Aracila a witch with such confidence, but now that she was right in front of them, they couldn’t even meet her gaze.
Clicking her tongue in disappointment, Aracila turned to Damian.
“Or perhaps, is it that their superior fails to maintain proper discipline? What do you think, Sir Vandermir?”
She was calling him out for standing by and listening to his subordinates without intervening.
“I apologize, my lady. That was my mistake.”
Damian, acknowledging his fault, bowed his head and then turned to his men with a cold expression.
“Apologize to Lady Hugo and then run thirty laps around the training grounds.”
“No, make it a hundred.”
“Yes, ma’am! We’re sorry!”
Knowing they were in the wrong, the knights didn’t protest.
They hurriedly bowed in apology before sprinting off toward the training field.
Once they were gone, Damian shifted slightly, about to speak—
“Aren’t you going too, Sir?”
Aracila cut him off with a bright, innocent smile.
Damian hesitated, scanning her face.
“…Are you saying I should run as well?”
“Why not? Standing by and listening without stopping them makes you complicit, doesn’t it?”
Smiling sweetly, Aracila gestured toward the training field.
It was the first time in Damian’s life that he had been ordered to run as punishment.
But he couldn’t argue—he was guilty as charged.
“Understood.”
“Good. Since we have matters to discuss, you’ll only have to run ten laps. Aren’t you grateful?”
Aracila graciously granted him leniency. I’m so kind, it’s almost a problem.
“…Am I supposed to be thankful?”
“Would you rather run a hundred laps?”
Lowering his head in surrender, Damian wordlessly turned and headed for the training grounds.
Inside the Office
Sitting comfortably in the office, Aracila leisurely enjoyed her dessert.
When Damian returned after running ten laps, she narrowed her eyes at him.
“Did you actually run? How is it that you’re not even sweating?”
“That much isn’t enough to make me sweat. I have a regular training regimen.”
“You should have said so earlier. I would’ve just made you run a hundred laps.”
Damian, now seated across from her, looked at her with a mix of exasperation and resignation.
Running a hand down his face, he let out a low sigh and asked—
“So? Why did you come here without notice?”
“I met with the duchess today. She gave me this, but I think you should see it too.”
Aracila handed him the documents from the duchess.
As Damian skimmed through the contents, his expression darkened with every passing second.
“This is unbelievable.”
“Right? Imagine how I felt receiving it out of nowhere. She said I have to prepare everything within fifteen days.”
His grip tightened around the papers.
Even for an esteemed noble family, the scale of the dowry was excessive.
It was obvious that the duchess had made such outrageous demands to sabotage the wedding.
The real problem, however, was that Aracila might truly reconsider the marriage because of it.
After all, dowries and wedding gifts were often the root of conflicts in any marriage.
If this marriage falls apart, I’ll be the one at a greater disadvantage.
For Damian, this marriage carried the weight of a ducal title.
On the other hand, Aracila had no clear personal gain from it.
Her main reason for going through with it—preventing her sister’s marriage to Oscar—didn’t feel like a particularly strong motivation from his perspective.
Which meant that at any moment, she could change her mind.
And that thought unsettled him.
“If you wish to call off the marriage because of the dowry, then…”
─── ･ ｡ﾟ✧: *. ꕥ .* :✧ﾟ. ───
